When asked if he would be disappointed if the Cavs failed to make the playoffs, Jack scoffed at the idea of just making the playoffs being the biggest goal of the season. Why bother, he reasoned, if players are happy just to show up and lose in the first round?

“What else are we playing for?” Jack asked. “Who cares if you got a free certificate to the playoffs and you went home with a free T-shirt they handed out for the first round? So what? Nobody cares or remembers that and I don’t think anybody should use that as a stepping stone. If you’re about to take a test, you don’t want to just get a 72, you want to get 100. Who wants to come in fifth place?”